Silver Bullets
by heartstrung
Summary: AU. I'm pretty sure SoN hasn't been done like this before. There's something a bit... different about Percy. Something Hera can't quite put her finger on. She's still putting him through the memory wipe, though. Rating subject to change. Warnings inside.
1. Chapter 1

**AN:** I suck at making up titles. This has to be one of the weirdest things I've ever written. Like, legit weird. It was kinda awkward to write at some parts. Also, I'm kinda indecisive on whether I should continue it. I haven't planned that far ahead for it really. Also, this has absolutely nothing to do with the story, but I feel accomplished today… For a girl that spent most of the day holed up in her basement playing Modern Warfare 2 (on Veteran, mind you. I'm trying to get used to not using aim assist. I still need to beat "Takedown" and "Enemy of My Enemy" on that difficulty, and "Takedown" scares the living hell out of me because I hate being alone in favelas.) while singing obnoxiously to the radio. I must've heard "Give Me Everything" by Ne-Yo and Pitbull six times today. I have a reason for doing that: The weather is this beautifully bipolar state o' mine was absolute shit. It's been raining pretty hard on and off for the past few hours. Remember: Whenever you call, baby I roll up. Another, more important thing to remember is: _**Think Remus Lupin, but sexier.**_ It's that important. Speaking of our friendly _werewolf _(I'm dropping hints, people.), it's time to get to the disclaimers and warning!

**Warnings**: This fic may contain slash. I'm not totally set on it, but that doesn't mean it's not a possibility. Also, there will be violence and language and words that may me familiar to you. I'll have a list of definitions at the end of each chapter if there is.

**Disclaimers: **I do not own PJO, Teen Wolf, Harry Potter, and do not have a witty way of expressing this. I'm sorry.

.x.

They waited, crouched patiently in the seamless dark of the quiet alley right outside of the apartment building despite the fact that New York was lit up like Christmas as always, for the target. Rain pounded the concrete, but they were not bothered. It may have masked the scent of the victim, yet their senses were heightened to almost two-hundred percent of the regular mortal and allowed them to sift through the muddled odours of the city.

One of them, who appeared to be the leader of the small group, tasted the air, letting the wet air filled his nostrils and tickle the back of his throat, and grunted. His glowing eyes flashed as he nodded towards the mouth of the alley. The four accomplices he had brought with him assembled there, two laying flat against either wall, while he stayed back, an e vil smile forming on his face as their prey approached.

He was totally unaware of the danger that lurked several feet away, cruising casually in the rain humming along to his iPod with his hood up and his hands in his pockets. Not much attention was paid to his surroundings since he knew the way home like the back of his hand and could walk the route blinded, disorientated, and sideways through an obstacle course. He was also in one of the safer neighbourhoods in New York where crime was frequent, but not enough for him to fear of getting stabbed or mugged. So, he was perfectly chill, his mind almost entirely on the music. That's why he didn't notice when they crept up on him until it was too late.

The first one, a man who he dully noted had hair like a rat's nest, rammed into him, knocking the ear buds out of his ears and alerting him to the oncoming danger. Quickly, he regained his balance and whirled around, landing a short left hook to the head and went deep in the belly with his right. The guy let the air out of his lungs with a large, dry sound and fell back.

The young man was jerked upwards, another, much larger foe holding him upright by the collar of his jacket. He spun around and threw his left arm over the man's extended one. Then, using his momentum, he swung his right arm into the ribs of his captor. The crunch the came after his punch hit home made him flinch, but he didn't let up. The giant's body twisted in pain. Still having control over the man's left arm, he threw another punch at his exposed side. The man roared in pain, sounding more animal than man, as his ribs fractured. The adrenaline-pumped teen wasted no time in reaching for his pocket and unleashing his sword after shoving the man away, letting him slip on the slick sidewalk and land halfway into the busy street.

A third man leapt into the fight, and the fourth waited – still unseen by the boy – and tensed in preparation to join in the fight also, but the leader stopped him when he placed a hand on his shoulder and murmured, "Seth." Seth stood and watched the short-lived fight. The target was surprised at the appearance of another person, who too was armed with a sword, and had to compose himself quickly. The man in the shadows knew the boy was talented with a sword; he was flawless in the strength and speed he put forth into dueling, but Seth hadn't know he was _this_ good and even began to doubt the they could actually capture him with the skill the kid held. Seth then shook his head, scolding himself for thinking such thoughts. Negative thoughts would bring down his game and that was not something he could afford to let happen when his leader was around, counting on him to do the job they were specifically hired to do. Vaguely, he noticed his ally had gone done, dark crimson spilling from the slash across his chest into the puddles; the boy just stayed where he was, frozen and breathing a bit heavily, staring at the bodies around him. None of them were dead, of course. He wouldn't kill them outside of an actual battlefield, but he also couldn't risk anybody even catching eye of them, so he dragged all of them to the alley.

The teenager's senses were completely open and searching for any more threats. His eyes darted around and kept on returning to the spot where the remaining two men stood. He couldn't see them, though, making Seth smirk. He dumped the bodies in the furthest corner of the alley. With his back turned, the kid made an absolutely perfect target, and, with his leader's instruction, Seth tackled him from behind, only to have his position switched into that of the kidnapee. He landed roughly on the pot-holed ground and spat out the loose pieces of asphalt he had collected on the way down.

"What do you want from me?" the raven-haired boy yelled. He had Seth pinned by his legs and with an elbow in his back.

"Can't tell. Boss's orders," Seth replied cheekily in an attempt to buy time.

"Who's your boss?" he asked.

"Can't tell you that either."

The teenager was getting irritated at his answers and increased the pressure in his elbows. "I could kill you right now if I wanted to, you know."

He was bluffing, Seth could tell. He knew the kid really kill him unless his life depended on it – which it really did, but he couldn't let him know that. "Please don't," he pleaded, pretending to take him seriously.

"Tell me who your boss is –." Seth felt the weight being lifted off of him and jumped to his feet, readying himself for the exact moment he would strike.

At long last, the leader had joined in the fight, attacking with vicious, clawed fists and high kicks. The teen dodged them all, completely immersed in the fight. Seth watched with mild interest, only looking for the brief window of him he had to paralyze the guy. It came when his leader pulled a spear from out of nowhere and caught the sword mid-swing, locking it in place. Despite his immense strength, the young man struggled against the strength of the brawnier man trying to keep the weapons locked.

Seth ran towards them, pinpointing the precise spot he would strike as he did. His feet pounded the asphalt, signaling the boy of his approach, who then dropped his sword to free his hands a moment too late. He collapsed to the ground when Seth jammed his fingers into the small of his back, immobile. Seth's leader returned his spear from where it came and stood over the frozen boy. "I'm very disappointed in you, Perseus Jackson," and then ordered Seth to beat him unconscious.

Percy really regretted not taking up Annabeth's offer of giving him a ride home.

.x.

Percy screamed in pain. He arched his back against the stone cold surface of the concrete table he was chained to as his bone shifted, broke, and mended themselves underneath his swear-slicked skin. His body buckled when muscle moved and transformed. With each snap and each spasm his cries became more animal than human, varying in pitch and tone.

Now-clawed fingers tore at his own pale flash in attempt to unleash the monster that caused the agonising burning in his chest, leaving long gashes that wouldn't be there in the morning. Hair grew everywhere on his bare body, becoming soft and silky raven fur that covered nearly every nook and cranny. Long, slim fingers grew rough on the palms and became even longer, tipped with claws like razors. The bones in his feet elongated and five toes became the four padded ones he would run on. His already muscular torso and biceps bulged with bigger, newer muscle. Percy howled when the throbbing in his head increased ten-fold as his skull lengthened into that of a wolf's, the silky fur erupted from his pores in a rippling effect that ended at the very tips of his pointed ears.

It was finally over, for which Percy was glad, and for the first time since he had been human he opened his eyes.

Instantly, he was awed by the moon-kissed, dreamy appearance everything had taken on except the moon, who hung in the starless night with clarity and vibrancy. The picture was ruined when his highly-sensitive ears picked up the reverberating echo of footsteps a few corridors away.

When the individual entered the stone chamber, Percy tried to lift his head but couldn't due to the chains strapping his hands and feet to the table. Instead, he sniffed the air and caught a scent almost familiar to him. It was a blend of something unmistakably recognisable and something he barely knew which made his nostrils burn from the strength of it. He growled lowly at the stranger, finding himself unable to communicate using words. The growling grew in intensity and volume when he saw who it was. Admittedly, it took him a few moments to organise his scrambled brain – there was no mistaking who it was though.

Luke Castellan. He almost couldn't believe his eyes. Percy had seen the son of Hermes die himself, been there to grieve at his funeral, knew he was dead when Nico had announced that his soul had made it into Elysium, yet here he was in the flesh, alive and breathing, though there was some a bit… off about him. Something Percy just couldn't quite put a finger on. Then he realised with a horrifying conclusion.

His eyes.

In his eyes there was not a single speck of sky-blue to be found in a sea molten gold. Kronos had completely taken over. There was a thought nagging at his mind, telling him that this wasn't possible: Hadn't Luke's body been burning when he plunged the knife into his chest? Wasn't he supposed to spontaniously combust when Kronos regained all his power? He released a deep-throated snarl. Kronos chuckled.

"My, my. What do we have here? Perseus Jackson, son of Poseidon, supposed 'hero of Olympus', and disperser of me, the king of time, father of the Olympians, Kronos?" His voice grated along Percy's skin, sending shivers throughout his lupine body. The Titan stood over the table and bent down to look into still pristine sea green eyes. "It appears so."

Percy snarled once more and snapped at his face and bared his glistening, white, serrated teeth.

Kronos righted himself and frowned disapprovingly at him and tutted. "Acting like a wild animal isn't going to get you anywhere, Perseus, it only makes you even more of a monster. Though," he paused briefly, looking the teenager over, "I must say, Lycaon did a wonderful job capturing you. How he got past your Achilles' heel to deliver the bite, I have no idea, but as long as he got the job done… Mother will be most pleased."

Percy froze. _Mother?_ He wracked his brain for any information he could find on the mother of the Titans. Out of the corner of his eye he could see a wicked grin forming on the face of the enemy as he pieced everything together to form one answer: Gaea.

_Shit._

Kronos' grin was a infuriating as it was evil, yet it wasn't a full, blown-out villainous smile. "Oh, mummy dearest, your sweat great-grandmother. I look forward to telling Gaea all about you, Perseus; she loves hearing about the family, and it's been such a long time since she's been awake. You see," he began pacing back and forth casually in fron of Percy with his hands clasped behind his back, "she's been in a sort of hibernation ever since your father and his siblings-" Percy could practically taste the hatred rolling off of Kronos' tongue "-used my own weapon against me, shredding me into billions of pieces, not unlike what I had done to my father, Ouranos, when the world was still fairly new. But now, with monsters both common and forgotten being recruited into my ranks, I will have the power to stir Mother Earth from her millennia of sleep. Together, with the help of my brethren, we shall overthrow those Olympian fools for once and for all, and you, my young werewolf, are going to help me." His grin morphed into a wide, malicious smile and his golden eyes glinted in the silver moonlight.

_Never_, Percy wished he could say, but instead was voiced by a growl. There was no way in Hades he would ever side with Kronos, whether he was forced to or not. The Titan had caused the death of so many friends, of so many innocent lives, during the war.

"Stupid boy, you _will_ side with me. After all, only Lycaon can teach you how to control this." Kronos ran a finger down the centre of Percy's chest. Kinky bastard. "And he's not willing to give lessons to those on the opposing side. You're a much more dangerous individual than you were before, Perseus. You're more of a killing machine than you were before, you don't know how control the shift, and once you start, you'll never stop. Not for your friends and not for your loved ones. You'll kill them all until you learn to handle this bloodlust, and I'm postive you're not okay with," what were once Luke's lips brushed up against his ear, "murder."

Percy blacked out with a whimper and a bang.

.x.

The pillow muffled Percy's scream when he opened his eyes to find another pair staring right at him. It took him about five minutes to realise they were only smudges on the wall. His heart rate slowed and Percy relaxed, flipping onto his back and staring at the ceiling as he collected his thoughts and shot upright.

He had almost forgotten about Luke. Percy shuddered and glanced at the clock. It was just past two in the morning and the moon was full outside his window. For a quick instant he thought his bones might start to shift, fur might grow out of his face, he wouldn't be able to use words. He held his breath, preparing for the pain that never came, and sighed in relief. It was all just a dream. Something like that couldn't have I in under an hour. Percy had been attacked earlier by monsters though and didn't remember what had happened after, but he had made it home, hadn't he?

His mother turned on the tap in the bathroom next door, and Percy didn't want her to check on him only to find him awake. She'd ask questions like the responisble parent she was and he wouldn't like to worry her, so he lay back down and let sleep drag him under.

_Specks of dust flitted through the shallow shaft of light illuminating the black room. The air was cool and damp like a cave's, yet in the very centre it radiated warmth. There, right smack-dab in the middle of the cave was a large cave that appeared to have sprung straight from the earth, constructed of thick roots, and sitting inside was a person that made Percy's blood boil._

"_Ah, Perseus, glad to see you've received the dream. I haven't seen you in a while now, how's Annabeth?" Hera smiled, but it didn't quite reach her peacock-blue eyes._

_He replied curtly and held his composure. "Hello, Lady Hera. Annabeth is doing well, thank you very much. She's very busy wokring on Olympus, so it's not like I get to see her much." She really didn't care about Annabeth or her well-being. Honestly, she nearly despised the girl as much as she did all of her husband's illegitament children. Look at how she treated Hercules, for example. Those Disney fools didn't know how angry it made her when they twisted the story to make the bastard one of her own children. Though, her hatred of the daughter of Athena was something born more out of jealousy than of dislike. The son of Poseidon would be a much more faithful partnet than Zues will ever be._

_Hera plastered on another fake smile. "That's wonderful to her, but let us get down to business." The queen of the gods turned to face the darkness behind her. "Jason!" she called._

_A blonde boy, who could't've been that much younger than Percy, emerged from the shadows. Percy was taken aback by the intensity of his electric blue eyes that reminded him uncannily of Thalia. The new boy looked the older teen up and down in the dim light with a bored expression. "Jason Grace, son of Jupiter, consul of demigods, praetor of the First Legion, vanquisher of the Titan Krios."_

_Percy hesistated in taking Jason's hand. He didn't like the guy already after twenty seconds. "What a list of accomplishes you have there," he said dryly. Finally deciding to shake the Roman's hand, he grasped it as hard as he could without breaking the kid's hand. "Perseus Jackson, son of Poseidon, child of Greece, bearer of Atlas' curse, bane of Hyperion, disperser of Kronos, saviour of Olympus," he wondered if he should add the last part. He didn't want to sound arrogant. _Oh, what the hell. Just say it. _"all-around better guy than you." The last part was meant as a joke, and Jason caught on, breaking his stoic expression with a small smirk. "You said your name was Grace, didn't you?"_

_Jason nodded. "Last name, yeah. Why?"_

_He peered at him before shaking his head. "It's nothing. Grace is just a common last name."_

_Hera broke the awkward silence that followed by clearing her throat. "Boys, I am in desperate need of your assistance."_

.x.

**AN:** Reviews earn you a Krispey Kreme doughnut and flames make s'mores! ConCrit always earns you a gold star! :D

I swear I will smack myself if I don't write a MW2 one-shot. Luckily, I came up with an idea last night. Please, please, _please_, force me to write it with your wonderful reviews!


	2. Chapter 2

**AN:/ **Alas, my "Average number of words per story: 1,337" must come to an end. If you're not familiar with the number, Google it. You'll see why I'm sad to see it go. I'm not particularly pleased with this chapter; I'm still experimenting with my writing style and feel the quality was a bit downgraded towards the end, but I wanted to get this finish before I go on a short vacation starting Wednesday. **For the people who are fans of Maggie Stiefvater (**_Wolves of Mercy Falls series, the Books of Faerie series, etc._**) **she is travelling around the US doing readings and book signings according to my mother. I'm attending one of them in my state and don't know where the rest of them are, so look them up yourselves. :P

**Snape, Snape, Severus Snape... **I am so, so, so, so, _so_ physced for _Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part Two - _too bad I'll be gone when it comes out. When I do see, I'll cry my eyes out for the duration of it 'specially at the end. Just seeing commercials gets me all teary-eyed. **Oh!** And then there's _Winnie the Pooh_ that will be an absolute must-see for me. Those commercials make me cry, too. x)

**Important:** I am in need of a quality Beta who will (obviously) beta my stories and any random one-shots if they want. Please PM any applications with proof of previous betaing and/or stories they've written. Also, if I didn't respond to your review, I am so very sorry for not doing so and instead will gift you with a hug. :D

**Disclaimer: **Same as last time, loves. That will be my disclaimer for the entire story.

**.x.**

The raven-haired boy heard the arrow before he saw it. He whipped around, the head of it narrowly dodging his nose, grasped the shaft, and snapped it. Reyna cursed, a string of fluent Latin, and reloaded, holding the string taut if the boy met the unlikely chance of spotting her among the brush.

"What the hell?" he exclaimed to no one in particular, considering the fact that he was in the middle of some unknown forest. Reyna tensed and ground her teeth, wincing slightly at the sound it made. His head snapped up and she found a sea green skim over her baby blues.

She released the arrows.

Reyna didn't intend to harm the teen… _fatally_. Nor did she intend to kill him, but any trespasser upon the Hunters' campsite – be it mortal or not - demanded instant capture and to be brought to Diana, their patron goddess – especially when it was a man. Her lip curled. _Men._ There were no words to describe the emotions stirred up in her at the mere thought of the opposite sex.

Now Ocean Eyes, as she had ridiculously dubbed him, was looking around in confusion – _Where did those arrows come from? _– and scratched his head. Reyna smirked to herself and once again readied her bow. He hadn't seen her. Good.

If this guy had fast enough reflexes to dodge arrows, he likely wasn't the human he looked to be or wasn't even a demigod, and she was probably going to need assistance. The blonde-haired girl put her free hand to her mouth and whistled. Anyone not familiar with the Hunters would like it was a simple birdsong, a common sparrow's chirping, but every Hunter of Diana could understand and differentiate the whistles.

The girls crept up like fog, a silver haze riding the wind, and got into position, each bow loaded and aimed with a variety of different arrows. Some carried weighted nets if the boy tried to struggle; others were armed with miniscule darts whose needles would inject a subduing draught if needed. The Hunters were not to be trifled with.

A coo which sounded not unlike a mourning dove's broke from her lips and instantly the silence was filled with the _twang!_ of bowstrings.

Ocean Eyes was at first confident in his ability to avoid the shining projectiles until he found himself unceremoniously sprawled with his face in the dirt and a thick rope binding his hands behind his back. Penelope, a Hunter of Latino blood, pulled a bandana from her back pocket and secured it in front of his eyes. She stood him up and spun him around, making him lose his bearings. Then, with a spear poking into his back acting as his guide, he clumsily stumbled through the trees.

**.x.**

When Reyna and the small portion of the Hunt that'd accompanied her reached the camp, she took responsibility of taking the boy straight to a shimmering silver tent, larger than the others. With quick and precise fingers, the blonde Hunter nearly tore the rope and blindfold off of the boy and shoved him through the opening flap. She didn't feel the need to be gentle with him and made what sounded like passive, but serious threats to his life if he even dared to disrespect the goddess before leaving and he nodded methodically in response.

Diana, looking to be the age of fifteen rather than the centuries old she was, was cleaning one of her hunting knives when the black-haired boy fell through the doorway. Somehow, he managed to stay on his feet and when he looked up he blushed, clearly embarrassed that he was _shoved_ by a _girl _into a _goddesses tent_ – a _virgin _goddess, sworn off of and rumoured to hate _men_. She quirked a dark brow, making him blush deeper and attempt to dust himself off. "I thought I sensed a man – more like a boy, really – in my presence." She didn't speak disdainfully, though there wasn't much hiding the disgust hidden in her voice. The goddess looked him over, analysing him, and frowned. Something was wrong with him. "What is your name, boy?"

"Oh, uh… um…" he was drawing a blank. There were no memories to draw from. His name was there, still. It sat on the very tip of his tongue. "Perseus," he finally managed. Diana didn't reply and waited for the rest of his answer. "No last name." His words were rushed but true.

The moon goddess's stoic expression didn't change. Although Perseus did think he caught a flash of surprise in her cold silver eyes.

"So, ah, Perseus," she began, "are you aware of the consequences of intruding my camp?"

He swallowed. On the way here, he heard some of the girls telling each other stories of some of the people who were caught in their territory and were never to be seen again, either turned into an animal and hunted down or just vanished. They were speaking rather loudly, so Perseus assumed they _wanted _him to hear them. "I may have heard some things, my Lady."

"And you do know that I am goddess of the Hunt. Meaning my girls and I track and kill monsters, much like yourself."

Perseus blinked. Did she just call him a monster? He looked down at his hands. They were tanned and scarred, it's not like they were covered in scales or fur or something. He didn't even have claws! "I'm sorry, Lady Diana, but I don't know what you're talking about."

She gave him a quizzical look, half believing him. She detected no lies about him, nor did she doubt the amnesiac act. "You mean to tell me that you are not a minion of Lycaon?" – _What?_ – "A lycanthrope?" – He had a feeling he wasn't the greatest at Latin – "A

werewolf?" she put bluntly. Oh. His face screwed up at the prospect. Was he? Hell, he didn't know. It's not like there was a full moon out - it was the middle of the day!

"Well, I, uh, don't know… But, if you don't mind me asking, why would you think so?"

"Moon Goddess. It is my duty to be aware of beings related to my realm," she deadpanned.

"Yeah, that makes sense," he replied awkwardly, mentally face-palming at his idiocy.

The moon goddess smirked a little. _What is it with the Hunt and smirking? They all act like fricking Slytherins with all the smirks and secrets! _Where that piece of reference came from, he didn't understand. Particularly the part about the Slytherins. "There is no need to be ashamed of your memory loss. The Fates work in strange ways even us gods do not understand. You should be honoured to be one their… _pawns _to be put forth into position, yet I cannot shake the feeling that a storm is brewing, one deadlier than the last" – her eyes darkened to a slate hue – "and that your appearance is a key step in its arrival. There have been rumours that…" She shook her head as if it could clear her thoughts and with a flourish of her hand gestured to the door. She wanted him to leave.

"Lady Diana..?"

"Perseus, please leave my presence." She inwardly flinched at using the word "please" directed towards a man.

"Yes, my Lady."

It only took a few seconds for him to reach the tent flap, the silvery fabric clutched in his hand, when the goddess called softly to him, "I wish you the greatest of luck, Perseus, bearer of Lycaon's curse." His stomach rumbled loudly and, abashed, he murmured an apology. "Also, tell the girls that I have given you the privilege of food and rest and new clothing, but they can still tranquilise you if you become out of hand. I will _not_ have the guilt of being responsible for a hero's death hanging over my head if they kill you. The gods will not be pleased."

Perseus took his shirt into hand and frowned at the slashes left by the arrows that left it in tatters. "Will do."

The typical hustle-and-bustle of Hunter life was going on outside: Girls with bows slung across their backs were carrying out chores while others hauled a large hog in a cart. Some of the girls were out at the fringe of the camp practicing their archery and knife-throwing. To the east, the golden sun cast the sky in warm, sunburnt hues going near-purple in the west. In the centre of the camp was a blazing fire the all of the tents faced and seated around it were a group of girls crouched on logs. Perseus hesitantly walked up to them. "He-" he began, only to be interrupted by a girl with honey coloured braids who stood up and said, "I'll go get Reyna." Another girl, her chocolate hair pulled up in a tight ponytail, threw a cold hazel-eyed glance at him and told him to shut his mouth "before he catches flies." He quickly closed his still-agape mouth under her scowl and simply stood there, waiting for this "Reyna" chick.

Turns out, Reyna was the girl who had initially shot the first arrows at him and had brought him to Diana. She was blonde, though her hair colour leaned more towards cornsilk than golden, and had blue eyes he associated with the summer sky – in a totally non-romantic, spur of the moment poetic thing he felt when he was around her, mind you. And, if you looked past her higher-than-thou expression and thin-pressed lips, she may have been pretty. _Or hot_. But there's no thinking like that around the patrons of a virgin goddess. _Oops._ "Reyna," she introduced herself, "daughter of Apollo, god of music, poetry, medicine, amongst other things." That explained the whole poetic thing he experienced.

"Perseus, guy who's lost in the woods, amongst other things," he established dryly. "I prefer 'Percy,' though," he added as an afterthought.

"Percy, I don't want to have my time wasted by the likes of scum like you, so tell me why Ella needed to bring me to you." She didn't have time to beat around the bush and Percy was caught off guard by her abruptness.

"Lady Diana told me to, uh, tell you that I could have food, rest, and new clothes." He had a feeling he was forgetting something. "And to not, like, kill me if I get quote 'out of hand.' Don't ask what that means," he put sharply before she could question it.

"Sounds reasonable. Anything for Diana. Penelope," she called to the sleek ponytail girl, "show our guest where he is to stay for the night, then bring him to dinner and send someone to get him new clothes. The last boy's may be cleaned of blood." Percy swallowed thickly. _The last boy's?_ There was something sinister in those sapphire eyes, Percy just knew it.

Penelope rose from her seat around the fire and ushered him to a bare tent of the very outskirts of the camp. "Since we're out of cots, you'll have to sleep on the ground. I'll have Nallie bring you a spare sleeping bag and your clothes after you eat. C'mon." She beckoned to another fire pit, this one with the hog turning on a roaster. "Can I get some pork for the guy here? Diana's orders."

A ginger took a butcher's knife and sliced a nice, clean cut from the pig's backside and handed it to him on a paper plate. "It's fresh. Killed 'em this morning," she informed him, taking another slice of a choice cut off the hog and handed it to Penelope, who'd just returned from talking to Nallie and Percy hadn't even known was gone, who said, "Thanks." Enviously, Percy stared at her cut and then trained his gaze on his own, the least pleasant and meaty part of the pig, and almost objected. The ginger quieted him with a look and he grudgingly ate the pork with the plastic fork she'd given him.

"Garbage?" he asked when he was finished and she pointed to a heavy duty plastic bag. "Thanks," came his mutter and he retreated to his lone tent, collapsing on the roll of portable bedding when Reyna came in, first poking her head through the door.

"What're you doing here?" Percy groaned, obviously not happy with her sudden arrival.

"Making sure you're not getting into trouble. Do you have any other questions?"

"Yeah." He rolled over so he was facing her. "Why does everybody here hate me?"

"Because you're a man and we are girls who have pledged ourselves to a life of chastity free of men."

"But everyone has to have a reason to want to. What's yours?"

"Why should I tell you?" she sniffed.

Percy shrugged. "I don't know, because I asked?" Reyna looked fiercely at him, firmly stating that she was not about to spill to him. "Fine," he conceded, not in the mood to argue, "Diana mentioned something about a deadly storm, which I'm guessing is figurative for some awful battle. What do you know about it?"

The corners of her lips pulled down and she paused, weighing the consequences of telling him about the war. "You mean to tell me you don't know anything about the Great Prophecy?"

"No. My memory was kind of wiped," he snarked.

"There's no need to be rude about it, but anyways, the Great Prophecy was about this boy named Jason, the only son of Jupiter. Now, I don't know any details or the prophecy itself, so I'll start with the fact that he was a bastard – literally, he was born out of wedlock since Jupiter is married to Juno – and, due to the prophecy itself, wasn't meant to be born. You see, when the prophecy was first made, the Big Three – Jupiter, Neptune, and Pluto – made an oath to not conceive any more demigod children lest they wanted it to come true. Pluto and Neptune held the oath and didn't have any mortal kids. Jupiter did, too, for a while. There was this 80's soap star he fell for one day and was rumoured to have had a daughter with before they had Jason. Three years later though, when Jason was three years old, she died in a car crash. Immediately, Juno, his patron goddess as an attempt to get her to forgive Jupiter's lapse in judgement, brought him to the _Legio__Romana_, or the Roman Legion, a camp designed to train only the strongest of demigods where it's a cutthroat competition of _aut mori__facias_ – do or die. His sister never came, so we assume her to be missing at best. Jason the best of the best at camp, the _crème de la crème_ if you will, he was praetor of the First Legion, under the submission of only Lupa."

"Your goddess mentioned Lupa, who is she?" Percy queried.

"Lupa is a she-wolf, the mother of the two founders of Rome, Romulous and Remus, sons of Mars, the god of war. She now runs the Roman Legion and has a tough and unforgiving reputation to uphold. She eats the weaklings who don't make it past the first test," she enlightened him in a snide tone; most likely hoping the same would happen to him. Percy blinked, did she really _eat people?_, and shuddered.

"We, that's everybody at camp and I, knew that Jason was amazing in the arena and when he got a quest a number of years ago, naturally we all wanted to join him. For some weird reason, he didn't bring any companions on his trip besides one of Lupa's wolf servants whom he'd befriended."

"He was friends with a wolf?" interrupted Percy.

The blonde sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose in irritation. "Yes, he was friend with a wolf. Now shut up before I _do_ tranquilise you," she threatened.

"Jason went on numerous quests after that and managed to kill many monsters of Roman mythology and fetch things for the gods and whatnot, but when he was home at camp, he spent nearly all of his time training with his friends: Me, Bobby, Hazel, 'Kota, and Gwen.

"When the war came around last year, though, he became a bit distant from the rest of us; all of his days were spent training and training and training almost non-stop, stopping merely to sleep and eat. There was a time when he would come to me every once in a while and in me he'd confide all of the emotions he was trying so hard to hide from the rest of the Legions. In those times we grew very close, more than ever during the actual fighting of the war when he destroyed the Titan Krios and conquered Mount Othrys. Jason was a celebrated hero after that and festivities were planned after as a gift from Lupa for winning the war; she put training on hold for a week. Jason and I were practically inseparable.

"A few weeks ago, he disappeared. The camp was in turmoil. They had just lost their hero, their champion, their praetor-" Reyna was cut off by her own sniffle as it dawned on her that she was revealing too much and suddenly stormed from the tent. Percy, who was very confused by her unexpected leave, began to call after her when an admonishing voice in his head told him only to do so if he wanted to be tied up to a post and used as target practice.

Percy peaked out the tent and looked to the stars for a time approximation. Sadly, he was no astronomer and deemed the fact that it was time for bed because the waxing gibbous moon was high in a twinkling sheet of black. He fought down the urge to howl at it and instead unfurled the sleeping bag and drifted into a dreamless sleep.

**.x.**

**AN:/ **Long and literate reviews mean the world to me. Please rag on me for any mistakes I may have made. Reyna is a blast to write since I'm allowed to craft the kind of person she is. Opinions?


	3. readers, do the tebow and you get candy

**AN:/** This is so completely and utterly overdue that I should feel guilty, but alas, I do not. Why? Because numero uno, the first draft of this chapter was giving me writer's block out of the wazzoo. And numero dos, I just stopped writing for a little bit to focus on the ending summertime and then school. I'm _superubersorry _though. I actually scrapped the old draft of this chapter and rewrote the entire thing, and _voila!_ this! I hope you enjoy t. :)

**Disclaimer: **I hate writing these things _but_: I don't own PJO. And probably never will. (Clever, right?)

**.x.**

"Wake up, sleepy head."

Percy groaned as the tent flap opened and rolled on his side, his arm raised to his face. Reyna stood above him, hands on her hips. "Seriously, get up."

He ignored her and buried deep into the sleeping bag, blocking out any light that seeped through the opening. Above him, Reyna sighed and grabbed the end of the bag. "I warned you."

She lifted the bag up and it jerked from underneath Percy. He crashed into a heap on the hard dirt. "_Ow._" He rubbed his face with a dirty palm and shot a glare at Reyna. She crossed her arms and looked smugly at him, her blues eyes brilliant. "What was that for?"

Reyna rolled her eyes. "Simple: you wouldn't wake up."

"Yeah, well, you didn't have to _dump me on the ground_!" He brushed the dirt of his clothes.

She quirked a brow. "Oh, really? What would I have had to do, dump a bucket of water on you?" Strangely enough, the idea sounded appealing to Percy.

"Um, yes."

"Too bad. The nearest river is a decent couple of miles away from camp. This girl isn't about to waste her time getting a pail of water when she could do _this_" – she gestured to the sleeping bag– "Nuh-uh."

Percy glowered, having nothing else to say, and let the tent slip into silence. Reyna stared off into space. She tapped her fingers against her arm and chewed the inside of her cheek before she threw her hands in the air. "I don't have time for this!" Then, looking at her wrist as if it held a watch, she said, "Diana will be waiting. We've wasted enough time as it is."

"Why would she be waiting?"

She glanced at him, and then back at the tent flap. "Camp packed up hours ago. I'd be out of here if it weren't for you."

Two brows shot into his hairline, incredulous. "Yes, because it's _my_ fault that I'm an amnesiac who just happened to stumble upon a Hunter's camp where boys are frowned upon and sometimes even turned into animals and killed who's a heavy sleeper!"

"Gods, calm down. It was just a joke. Take a chill pill." Reyna gave him a look that said _thisboyiscrazy_ and started a brisk walk. Percy trailed behind her. "Anyway, once we group up, we're dropping you off at the Legion. Can't have half-crazed, amnesiac-demigods running around a national forest, now can we?" She led him out into what was once the hub of the camp, now reduced to a grassy, muddy clearing. It was as if they were never there.

"Wait – national forest? Where are we?" Something dawned on him. "The 'Legion'? You mean the camp?"

"Figures you'd ask the less important question first," Reyna muttered. "We are in the Redwood National Forest, located in sunny California. And yes, I meant the camp."

"So, this campo you go there?"

Her head snapped toward him and then to the sky, looking somewhere far beyond the canopy of Redwoods. "I _did_ go there. 'Did' as in 'used to'."

His curiosity was piqued, and he asked her, "Why not anymore?"

Reyna shrugged, her face still turned away from him. "Bad memories, bad people. The whole she-bang. I've got the Hunters now – we can all find a common issue between us. Somewhere, something went wrong." She looked at him and spread her hands, as if to say, _and here we are_.

Percy stumbled over a branch. "Huh."

"'Huh'?" Reyna repeated incredulously. "I tell you a vital piece of information about me and all you have to say is '_Huh_'? Boys."

"Well, what did you expect? For me give you a hug?"

She cringed. "Ugh, no. I'm a Hunter of _Diana_, idiot. I'm not even supposed to _associate_ with boys."

Ignorant as ever, Percy asked, "Then why are you 'associating' with me?"

Reyna slapped a hand to her face and rubbed her nose. "You really, truly are an idiot, you know that?"

"You might've mentioned it before."

Reyna's golden ponytail bobbed as she shook her head, reminding Percy strikingly of someone else. He furrowed his brows and studied her. Reyna caught him staring and crossed her arms. "What are you looking at?"

"I..." he said, swallowing a lump in his throat. "I think I might have just remembered something."

"Really?" Her eyes widened. "What?"

_Gold ponytail, gold ponytail, gold ponytail_. Percy's train of thought abruptly crashed into an impenetrable wall and he cradled his head in his arms, moaning in pain. "Eugh, I don't know. There's some sort of a wall blocking everything."

Reyna barked a laugh. It was quick and mocking and somehow melodic. "Figures. You really are hopeless, aren't you?"

"I am _not_ hopeless," Percy said, still clutching the sides of his head. "And now I've got a killer headache – no thanks to _you_. Couldn't your hair be a different colour?"

"Sorry, hun, but Goldilocks is here to stay. Suck it up. Come on," she started to pick up her pace, settling into an easy jog.

The pair ran, with Reyna always in the lead, in silence past trees upon trees upon trees, over logs and under low-hanging branches. A few times Percy tripped or slipped in a slick patch of mud, causing Reyna to snort and roll her eyes. "Clumsy," she'd say. Percy would then flash a grin and trot on behind her.

After what felt like eternity to Percy, he asked, "Are we there yet?"

"Just a few more minutes." She didn't even look back.

Percy threw his head back and groaned. "You said that few minutes ago," he pointed out.

"This time," Reyna said, "I mean it."

He was sceptical, but wasn't about to piss Reyna off by voicing his opinions. She could lead him on a wild goose chase and dump him in the middle of the woods, a place where Percy didn't know left from right; he'd be lost for days.

A mob of silver peaked through the vast tree trunks and Percy nearly sighed in relief. It turns out Reyna was right. At the centre of the pack was Diana, an immortal glow and the air of power easily distinguishing her from the rest of the crowd. The girls parted like the Red Sea when Percy and Reyna approached. Diana lifted her head and peered down her nose at them. "I take it you were – delayed." Reyna began to apologise, but Diana had resumed speaking. "It doesn't matter now. We are now behind schedule, so we must reach the camp as soon as possible. Girls, load up." She fixed her eyes on Reyna, a _we'lltalkabouthislater_ glint in her moonshine eyes. The blonde ducked her head and looked properly cowed. She didn't speak a word to Percy the entire trip to the Legion.

Soon enough, the group came to a cave that was more badger den than anything else. It was large hole in the ground with a thicket of brambles guarding the opening. Diana nodded at the cave.

"I guess this is my stop then...?" Percy rubbed the back of his head awkwardly.

"It is, boy. Farewell." Diana stood stoically to his left and Percy stepped hesitantly down into the hole. He was surprised at the depth of it once he stood at the bottom.

"Goodbye, Lady Diana. Bye, Reyna." He waved at Reyna, and she only regarded him with a cold expression. "Oh-kay, then, bye," he muttered.

"Good luck, Perseus Jackson," called Diana from the rim of the den, "and may the gods be with you."

**.x.**

As Percy strolled through the long, dark cave, he kept on repeating what Diana had said: "_Good luck, Perseus Jackson._" Perseus Jackson... He let it roll around his head. Yeah, he liked the sound of it; it flowed. He could get used to having a last name.

**.x.**

He'd lost track of time when the light at the end of the tunnel finally appeared. Being there all alone in the dark and damp cave had driven Percy's ADHD to edge. By the time he stepped back into the daylight, a multi-chaptered epic about a wizard cat and his pet_pierogi_ had filled the great, black expanse that was his mind. Percy supposed he should've been checking for boobytraps or something, but he was just so _bored_.

At the end off the tunnel was a large meadow that seemed out of place in the expansive forest. It was filled with violet and yellow and blue wildflowers, and tall blades of grass. There was a stream somewhere among the grass; it gurgled and spit as it moved along. Percy walked up to it and formed his hand into a cup. He dipped it in the water and sipped, surprised at how cool and fresh it was. He fell back onto his knees and stared at his reflection, the stranger in the water.

At first he was unsure of what to think. _Handsome_ if he were vain, or _battle-hardened_ if he felt like the warrior he was, which wouldn't be an entirely unlikely possibility for a boy with no memory. At least now he had a clue as to how old he was now. The strong jaw and tanned skin with the sea-green eyes and the jet black hair could've been sixteen, maybe seventeen. There were scars caressing his cheek, pale and pink against his darker complexion, and one crossed the bridge of his nose. He ran his fingers across it and felt the sliver of raised flesh when he _was standing in front of a crowd, the glint of bronze in the corner of his eye and a man with molten eyes before him_ moved to touch the long, knotted scar on his forearm.

Percy kept exploring his face and body, hoping for another glimpse of a forgotten memory, and came to the small of his back, a seemingly magnetic spot on his body, and touched it. He flinched and dropped to the ground. His back lifted off the ground and his limbs jittered like an electrical current as he convulsed. The world around like flashed black, white, and red until his body finally seized up and stopped. Limply, Percy lay on the ground, a pain blooming in his back. "Ugh." His eyes flickered and he stretched, arching like a cat. "Note to self," he muttered, "do not, under any circumstances, let _anyone_ touch your back. At all."

Back on his knees, Percy scooped more water from the liquid and let it wash over him before drinking more. He was suddenly swept up by the immense desire to _sleep_ and against his will his lids fluttered shut and his mind shut down.

**.x.**

"Jupiter above!" growled Gwen. "Why don't you guys just – "

"Hush, Gwen," hissed Dakota, "I think he's waking up!"

She glanced at the unconscious boy and, true to form, Frank was right. He stirred slightly and his lids lifted before dropping again. "Mmm," he moaned, twisting to his left on the cot and throwing his arm at some unseen enemy. He rolled into the pool of drool on the other side of the pillow. Gwen snickered.

When the boy finally opened his eyes, Bobby was leaning over him. "Good mornin', Sleeping Beauty," he crowed then glanced out the window. "Or evenin'."

The boy tiredly shoved him away and sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Where am I?" he asked.

Bobby opened his mouth to say something, but Gwen was quicker. "Not until you answer some questions will we tell you."

He pondered this for a moment before answering. "Perseus Jackson," he said, almost unsure of his own name.

Gwen's mouth twisted into a smile. Interrogating him would be _too easy_. "Okay, Perseus," she tested the name on her tongue.

"I like to be called Percy," he said, cutting her off.

"Perseus," she began again, "how did you get here?"

"_Well_," he said slowly, "I'd tell you if I actually knew." Percy gave her a pointed look and Frank tried to hide a smile behind his hand.

Heat crept into Gwen's cheeks that she tried to push down. "You are currently in the infirmary of _Legio Romana_."

"The Roman Legion," Percy realised immediately. "Reyna talked about this place."

"R-Reyna?" said Bobby. Dakota leaned back, his lips in a thin line and a slight frown on his face. Gwen simply looked astonished and made no effort to school her expression. "You saw her?" Bobby whispered, a bright hope in his dark eyes.

"Yeah." Percy rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. Why were they so shocked about Reyna? "The Hunters picked me up and she was... there."

"Reyna?" Gwen repeated in disbelief. "Joined the Hunters?"

"Uh huh," he nodded. "She seemed to be pretty high up in rank there."

There was a crease between Dakota's eyebrows. "You said she talked about camp, did she ever mention us?"

Percy thought about this and shook his head. "No, she mentioned a 'Kota, Hazel, Gwen, and Bobby, but Jason seemed to be a hot topic..." he trailed off, unsure of what else to say.

"Jason?" Bobby swore. "Damnit. I should've known."

Gwen went to put a hand on his shoulder but he brushed her off. "None of us could have stopped her, Bobby," she murmured into deaf ears.

"Um," Percy volunteered, "who exactly is Jason? Reyna told me that he was a praetor and a hero and her friend and stuff, but who is he really?"

"Jason," said Dakota, "was a close friend to all of us. As cliché as it may sound, he was more than a leader. He was an inspiration to all of us in the Legion. And after the war – he just disappeared. Like, one day he was here, and the next, not."

"What would Reyna have to do with this though?" Percy couldn't help it, his curiosity was insatiable.

"Reyna and Jason – " Gwen hesitated and cast a worried glance at Bobby.

"_Reyna_ and _Jason_ had a _fling_, which _then_ turned into 'true love'," the other boy spat with a tinge of bitterness. His dark eyes were flecked with anger and another emotion Percy couldn't identify.

"Now, Bobby," Gwen sighed, "it wasn't 'true love'."

"Fine," he huffed, "they were _soul mates_. Much better, isn't it?"

"If it makes you feel any better," Percy piped out of the blue. "I can't even _remember_ my soul mate – or, at least I _think_ she was my soul mate. We were in love," he said.

"How can you not remember you '_soul mate_'?" sneered Bobby.

"Just like I can't remember _anything else_," snapped Percy.

"Wait," Dakota said, "you can't remember anything?"

He shrugged. "Not anything before today besides my first name. Why do you care?"

Gwen rolled her eyes. "Who _wouldn't_ care? It's not everyday you get your memory wiped."

She and Dakota shared a long look. "We should go tell Lupa," he muttered.

"Lupa? That wolf who eats people?" Percy said.

"She doesn't _eat_ them," Gwen defended her mentor quickly. "She just... sucks the meat from their bones," she finished weakly.

"Big difference," he said to himself.

"Hey!" barked Gwen. "Do you want to stay or not?"

Percy stared at her. "I wasn't aware that I was given the option."

"Why _was_ he given the option?" grumbled the sulking Bobby.

"Gods, just _shut up_, will you?" she retorted and turned back to Percy. "Lupa will decide whether or not to train you. We lost a lot of campers in the war." A shadow flickered across her face as she stood in the door. "Come on," she gestured to Dakota and the pair left the room.

"So," Percy began, breaking the perpetual silence, "what's it like here?"

Bobby could feel the sea-green gaze burning a hole in the back of his head and studiously ignored it. "It's like any other camp, really. Only a lot more violent," he said at last.

"So that means you have arts and crafts?" Percy wondered.

Bobby barked a short laugh. "Ha, no. Lupa had to get rid of it when she found out kids were using the paint as war paint and started throwing the ceramics at other campers. Man, was she _pissed_."

Percy smiled, pleased with himself that he knocked the bitterness from Bobby. "Yeah, I bet. She seems kinda up tight, if you're picking up what I'm putting down."

All of a sudden Bobby was at Percy's side and he leaned in close and whispered, "You know, she doesn't really eat kids. It's just a camp legend used to scare the newbies; a myth, that's all."

The amnesiac boy laughed softly. "Good to know," he whispered back, "I'd rather not be a wolf's breakfast, lunch, _or_ dinner."

There were footsteps in the hall outside and a sort muffled shuffle as Dakota and Gwen returned. Percy waved. "Where's Lupa?"

A great furry beast stepped out from behind them and raised its head. "Perseus Jackson," greeted a strong, female voice, "I wasn't told of your coming."

**.x.**

**AN:/** I'm going to shamelessly advertise for my other story, so feel free to skip over this part (even though you totally shouldn't). So, I have this fic 'girls just wanna have fun' and it's my baby and you should read and review ASAP. I'm feelin' the love, you see. I think just 'cause it's a genderbender means that people think it's going to be stupid, but guess what? (Spoiler alert!) Annabeth doesn't even _leave _Percy in it! (What? What is this insanity? This, my dear, dear friends, is my brains on paper. It involves bra measurings, bikini waxes, and mucho, mucho more! It's like a girl's best friend!)

You should definitely review this story too.

Just because I told you to. ;)

Feed the review whore!


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